Australia Market extends gain to second day

Australia stock market finished higher for second straight session on Friday, 03 May 2024, on following a strong finish on Wall Street overnight, with rate-sensitive banks and real estate stocks pacing the gainers ahead the Reserve Bank of Australia's (RBA) monetary policy announcement, due on May 7.

At closing bell, the benchmark S&P/ASX200 index advanced 42 points, or 0.55%, to 7,628.97. The broader All Ordinaries index was up 48.10 points, or 0.61%, to 7,897.52.

All 11 sectors ended higher along with the S&P/ASX 200 Index. Consumer Discretionary was the best performing sector, gaining 1.99%, followed by A-REIT (up 1.6%), information technology (up 1.2%), and telecommunication services (up 0.67%).

The best-performing stocks in S&P/ASX200 index were BLOCK INC. and THE STAR ENTERTAINMENT GROUP, up 9.83% and 6.10% respectively. The bottom performing stocks in S&P/ASX200 index were EVOLUTION MINING and STRIKE ENERGY, down 5.57% and 4.35% respectively.

Among individual stocks, Afterpay owner Block surged by 9.8% after the company reports 22% jump in gross profits to A$3.2 billion.

Macquarie Group closed 2.2% lower after the financial services group revealed annual net profits dropped 32% to $3.5 billion and slashed dividends.

ECONOMIC NEWS: Australia Services PMI Slips To 53.6 In April- The services sector in Australia continued to expand in April, albeit at a slower rate, the latest survey from Judo Bank revealed on Friday with a services PMI score of 53.6. That's down from 54.4 in March, although it remains above the boom-or-bust line of 50 that separates expansion from contraction. Central to the sustained improvement in services activity was higher new business inflows in April. Services new business increased for a third straight month and at the fastest pace since May 2022 as demand improved. Sub-sector data revealed that firms in the transport and storage sector recorded the most pronounced rise in new sales. Additionally, new export business returned to growth after falling in March. Although marginal, the latest improvement in foreign demand marked only the second expansion in seven months and helped to support the uptick in overall new business.

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